Ethan is Pastor of Teaching and Vision of The Bridge Church in Wilmington, NC. He previously served on staff for five years at The Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham under pastor J. D. Greear where he led the effort in launching several multi-site campuses.
Ethan is a coastal native who grew up about an hour away from Wilmington in Myrtle Beach, SC. He earned a bachelors degree in Pastoral Ministry from Pensacola Christian College in 2005 as well as a Masters of Divinity from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2011. Ethan has been married to his amazing wife for almost ten years and they have three beautiful girls—Nora, Harper, and Claire (3).
In May 2014, the Welch family, along with a team of 45 people from The Summit Church, moved to Wilmington to start The Bridge Church. Since that time, The Bridge has grown into a thriving church in Wilmington and has become known for their vision to be a church—For Christ, For Community, and For the City.